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The Bay Run 2016 is Coming

On 3rd April 2016, the 35th Bay Run will take place along Bournemouth Seafront with runners expected to turn out in their thousands. Now famed for its beautiful coastal route and its wide range of ages and abilities taking part, things weren’t always plain sailing for Bournemouth’s favourite coastal race.   

In 1981, the Bay Run was just a distant dream in the eyes of Bournemouth locals, Roger Brown and Bernard Dowding. The two had a vision of putting on such an event but with very different motives.

Bernard Dowding, a leading Bournemouth Youth Officer at the time, was spending much of his time at Southampton Hospital whilst his daughter, Abi, received life-saving treatment after being born with a hole in her heart. Dowding was keen to help other families going through a similar experience and was keen to put on an event that could raise essential funds for Southampton Hospital’s Cardiology Unit.

Roger Brown, a dedicated runner himself, was looking for an opportunity to inspire people with a new challenge and get the Bournemouth community active. The first London Marathon had taken place that year with a 20,000-strong application list. Clearly, Britain had a zest for getting active and Brown wanted to bring such an opportunity to the South Coast. Brown put together a proposal for Bournemouth to put on its own marathon and presented it to Dorset Police. The proposal was quickly rejected however, with road closures and staffing costs being cited as fundamental flaws in the plan.

Determined not to admit defeat, Brown put together a second proposal; this time for a half marathon, taking place along Bournemouth’s coast and utilising the promenade where car traffic was sparse. This time, the proposal was accepted and the Bay Run was set to make Bournemouth one of the first locations in the UK to host a half marathon.

Now the race proposal had been accepted, a number of new issues had to be solved. Matters such as producing signage, hiring marshals and marketing the event had to be resolved with virtually no budget. Bernard’s wife, Jenny, remembers her husband and son spending hours cutting up sponges that were used to cool down runners in the back garden.

Youth Officer and Bournemouth Councillor, Ted Taylor, was fundamental in encouraging members of the community to come forward and take part. The community did come forward though; Taylor believes there were over 200 people offering their time, and by the time of the first Bay Run, over one thousand applicants had signed up. Tactically scheduled, the first race took place just weeks before the London Marathon, meaning runners could use it as a training event.

Brown says: “The race appealed to many because it was one of the few half marathons in the country at that time. There was a mix between those taking it on as a challenge in itself and those looking to use it as a training race ahead of the London Marathon”. 

By the time the first Bay Run came around, over 1,000 applicants had signed up. As the years went by, the race went from strength to strength with more interest from runners and local businesses wanting to show support. Keeping true to its roots, the event now receives support from media partners, Heart FM and continues to support the work carried out by the British Heart Foundation. Since 2010, Bournemouth Bay Run has raised more than £251,294 from sponsorship alone.

Additionally for 2016, the event will benefit from the support of well-known brands, such as Ryvita, who will be providing naturally healthy snacks for runners; Rubicon Recruitment Group, who are sponsoring water stations; the RAF, who will be on site to enlist new recruits; The Training Room, who will be providing participant warm ups within The Waterfront and media partners, Heart FM.

Having been awarded gold status for two years running by the British Association of Road Races (BARR), the race is once again set to attract runners and fun runners in their thousands. This year, why not take part in the hashtag campaign #myheartbelongsto. Join in on Facebook and Twitter by letting us know who you will be running the Bournemouth Bay Run in aide of.

To find out more, please visit: bournemouth.co.uk/event/bournemouthbayrun.

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